Dry Conditions Likely to Linger for Months as Minnesota, Upper Midwest Experiences Drought

(KNSI) – Much of the Upper Midwest is in a state of drought. Nearly all parts of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan are experiencing abnormally dry, moderate drought or severe drought conditions.

According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor Conditions report, 46 percent of Minnesota is in moderate drought, including most of Stearns and Morrison counties. The St. Cloud metro is in an abnormally dry zone. National Weather Service meteorologist Brent Hewett says these dry conditions stem from lower-than-average rain and snowfall over the past few months.

“We’ve had a dry winter, not a lot of snowfall, and that kind of continued throughout spring where we’ve seen drier-than-normal conditions,” Hewett said. “And, the recent heatwave from the beginning of June until about now has amplified those conditions. Starting from just the beginning of the month, we’re already looking between one to three inches of [precipitation] below average for much of the climate sites across the state of Minnesota.”

And we shouldn’t expect relief anytime soon: Hewett says there’s no indication that Minnesota will receive widespread rainfall in the next week. (However, the St. Cloud area could see some showers and thunderstorms this weekend.)

“We’re in the onset of stages of the drought still, and we’re expecting the drier conditions to continue throughout the next several months across much of the state,” Hewett said.

These drought conditions are reflected in the Mississippi River, which Hewett says is starting to go into low flow. However, since the state’s drought conditions developed recently, many lakes are still within their normal levels.

“And just looking at some of the agricultural information from the USDA, it looks like as of last week for Minnesota that 75 percent of the major crops were recorded in good or excellent condition,” he said. “As we continue on, that’s when those issues really start to compound and worsen. We’re going to need several widespread rain events to start to dent and make an impact in the dry conditions.”

Dry conditions often come with heightened fire risk. For campers who may be traveling around the state and wanting to build campfires, Hewett says to stay up-to-date on regulations in state parks and other campgrounds and be mindful of any burn bans or red flag warnings in effect.

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